Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp reduced its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 134,952 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,867 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 3.1% of Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp's holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp's holdings in Microsoft were worth $50,659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newton One Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 66.7% in the first quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 50.0% in the first quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ MSFT traded up $1.38 during trading on Thursday, reaching $506.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,242,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,145,063. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.15, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $509.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $449.32. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $76.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.79 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The company's revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. Microsoft has set its Q1 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 24.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $527.32, for a total value of $2,557,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,624,012.52. The trade was a 11.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSFT. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 target price (up from $600.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $490.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $612.54.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.